It looks like construction on the WIRED Livinghome began this morning and there’s a webcam documenting the process. There’s an archive of stills at frequent intervals, so you can click over and view the entire process from the beginning (or every thing that’s been completed so far). All the main parts are supposed to be complete by September 7, and we’ll be able to get a pretty good picture of what the final home will look like. Also, if you’re interested in green prefab, the official WIRED LivingHome website, which fully launches on September 25, has some videos on deconstruction and factory-built homes.

This is a modern, concept home design by Gau Designs & Concepts, a multi disciplinary design consultancy based in Montreal, Canada. The idea of a green prefab home made of bamboo is quite compelling–that is, assuming the bamboo can be sourced locally. Depending on the species, bamboo is quick to grow. It’s also light and durable and has become popular to use in a variety of applications. The house design allows for a slightly slanted roof, which is not too slanted to preclude a green roof, but that is oriented at the right angle to generate power with a photovoltaic array.

CNET and Michael Kanellos went on the scene at XtremeHomes‘ factory to walk through the process of building a modern home. The video is just over 3 minutes long and talks about the efficiencies and environmental benefits of factory-built homes. Towards the end, there’s a small portion with Michelle Kaufmann demonstrating the NanaWall; she’s having the mkLotus built right now at XtremeHomes’ factory and the home will be unveiled at West Coast Green.

I like the idea of using things that we already have to create things that we need — which is probably why the concept of container housing is so intriguing. In Las Vegas, Arnie Stalk, in conjunction with METRO Development Group and SHARE, has created an actual prototype of the Instant Built House. IBH is a rapid deployment shelter made from standardized, recycled ISO modules — containers that can be transported via ocean cargo ships, railroad "piggy-back" trains, semi-trucks, helicopter airlift operations, and civilian and military jumbo air cargo transports. In other words, an IBH can be shipped practically anywhere in the world in a moment’s notice.

IBH Shelters are built with the following: fully insulated walls, photovoltaic solar array for power, wind-ventilated scoops and skylights, roof-mounted HVAC units, satellite cable and internet, and internal waste collector and water recycling systems. IBH models are secured on concrete caisson footings, foundations, and slabs. I’m surprised they used Longhorn colors to paint it, but we’ll let that slide. 🙂

I know you could probably surf around and subscribe to a few channels here and there, but I’ve found a fun way to put the best green videos from YouTube all in one place. Introducing the Jetson Green Video Library. If you have the time, click the first one and it’ll take you through to the very end of all 17 videos. And if you like a particular video, click the YouTube logo within the video and you’ll go straight to that video’s dedicated YouTube page. Let me know if I missed one and I’ll keep the page updated with great green content.